Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT) Rating Increased to Overweight at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Free Report) from a neutral rating to an overweight rating in a report published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have $60.00 target price on the financial services provider's stock.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on Essent Group from $72.00 to $71.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $67.00 target price on shares of Essent Group in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Barclays lowered shares of Essent Group from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $69.00 to $58.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $61.71.

Essent Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ESNT traded up $0.77 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $54.96. 648,329 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 630,506. Essent Group has a one year low of $51.61 and a one year high of $65.34. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $56.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $57.30. The company has a market cap of $5.71 billion, a PE ratio of 8.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.80.

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Essent Group (NYSE:ESNT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 14th. The financial services provider reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.67 by ($0.09). The business had revenue of $315.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $313.88 million. Essent Group had a return on equity of 13.35% and a net margin of 58.69%. The company's revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.64 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Essent Group will post 6.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Essent Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.31 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Essent Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Essent Group's payout ratio is presently 18.13%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Essent Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESNT. Vest Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Essent Group by 22.6% in the first quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 55,907 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,227,000 after purchasing an additional 10,289 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its holdings in Essent Group by 5.5% in the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 369,249 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $21,313,000 after buying an additional 19,271 shares during the period. Summit Global Investments grew its stake in Essent Group by 15.1% in the 1st quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 22,944 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,324,000 after buying an additional 3,018 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Essent Group by 9,493.8% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 112,727 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,507,000 after acquiring an additional 111,552 shares during the period. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc bought a new stake in Essent Group during the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. 93.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Essent Group Company Profile

Essent Group Ltd., through its subsidiaries, provides private mortgage insurance and reinsurance for mortgages secured by residential properties located in the United States. Its mortgage insurance products include primary, pool, and master policy. The company also provides information technology maintenance and development services; customer support-related services; underwriting consulting; and contract underwriting services, as well as risk management products and title insurance and settlement services.